Shifter by Michael J. Bowler ~ Excerpt
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About Shifter by Michael J. Bowler
Title: Shifter
Author: Michael J. Bowler
Series: The Healer Chronicles #2
Genre: Young Adult Sci-Fi Horror
Fifteen-year-old Alex and his learning-disabled friends barely survived the events of Spinner, but their nightmare has only just begun.
Alex’s wheelchair has never stopped him from doing what he wants, but his supernatural power to heal every human ailment known to science has put him in the crosshairs of a dangerous doomsday cult that will stop at nothing to capture him and his long-lost twin, Andy, who can shift illness from one person to another. When the boys combine their “gifts,” they unleash the power to control life and death.
Now Alex, Andy, and the others have been kidnapped by the U.S. military. On a creepy Air Force base in the remote Nevada desert, they must decide who to trust and who to fear while uncovering secrets this base wants to hide from the world. Who is the young boy with unusual abilities who’s treated like a soldier? What is hidden in an ultra-secret hangar that no one can access? And what unnatural experiments are conducted in that closed-off laboratory?
As Alex unravels these mysteries, he strives to bond with his twin, but Andy is distant and detached, trusting no one. He’s also more attracted to the dangerous power they wield than Alex would like. When misplaced faith in science ignites a hidden lust for supremacy, rescue can only come from the most unlikely source, and Alex must confront a terrible truth.
The Healer Chronicles continue…
Excerpt from Shifter
© 2022
Michael J. Bowler
Allison woke with a start. Had she been dreaming? She wasn’t sure, but she was sure she’d heard her father’s voice. She sat up in bed, the coverlet tumbling into her lap, and listened. Yes. It was her dad. His room was next to hers, but the voice was muffled enough that she couldn’t make out the words.
She slipped out of bed and dropped to the plush carpet. Not bothering with a robe to cover her pajamas, she padded across her expansive bedroom to the door. Easing it open, she peered out into the dimly lit, lushly paneled hallway. None of the household staff were up. Why should they be? It was the middle of the night.
The burnished wood flooring felt cold against her bare feet as she darted to the door next to hers. It was closed, but she pressed her ear up against it and listened.
“…just you and the two men left? Did you find any blood in the house?”
Allison gasped. Blood? Somehow, she knew her dad was talking about Alex. She yanked open his door, trembling with fear.
Her dad sat on his bed, wearing his fancy brocaded silk robe and black velvet slippers with the gold crown insignia, cell phone to one ear, worry creasing his face. He looked over as she rushed inside but didn’t seem surprised to see her. He held up a hand for silence and listened intently.
“All right. Get back here with the men. I’m going to contact my sources for any clues as to who took them.”
He ended the call and eyed Allison with a grim expression. The worry lines around his eyes looked deeper, almost like they’d been carved with a knife, and there seemed to be even more gray peppering his short dark hair.
“It’s Alex, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Armed men attacked the safe house and took him along with the other kids. Nathan and his older son were knocked out by some kind of drug and left behind, along with Martin.”
Allison felt her chest constrict with worry. “Does Martin know who took them?”
He shook his head. “The brief glimpse he had made him think military, so it might be the same group who brought Andy to that church.”
“Our government?” Allison felt disgust well up within her.
He didn’t look the least bit surprised at the idea. “There are some at the Pentagon who will use anyone or anything in the interest of national security, even children.”
Allison knew she should be angry, but she’d overheard enough of her father’s business dealings with the government over the years to know he spoke the truth.
“Go back to bed, Allison,” he said. “I’ve got to do some research.”
She knew better than to argue. “Just find him, Dad. Find all of them.”
“I will.” She returned to her room. Knowing she could never sleep now, she sat on her bed and lay back against the heavy wooden headboard, thinking about Alex. He’d literally brought her back from the brink of death at the risk of his own life. What kind of boy would do that? Most people seemed to care only about themselves. He had to be all right. He had to be!
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About Michael J. Bowler
Michael J. Bowler is an award-winning author who grew up in Northern California. He majored in English/Theatre at Santa Clara University, earned a master’s in film production from Loyola Marymount University, a teaching credential in English from LMU, and a master’s in Special Education from Cal State University Dominguez Hills. Michael taught high school in Hawthorne, California, both in general education and to students with disabilities. When Michael is not writing, he serves as a youth mentor with the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and a volunteer within the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles, but mostly he takes care of his recently adopted son. He is a passionate advocate for the fair treatment of children and teens in California and hopes that his books can show young people they are not alone in their struggles.
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